White House unveils report on modernizing government IT

The White House released a report Wednesday on modernizing the government’s information technology, urging agencies to move to cloud storage.

The report also outlined general steps the government should take to ramp up its modernization efforts. The recommendations include bolstering security for the highest risk and most valuable technology, consolidating networks to save money and adopting broader tech tools that aren’t agency-specific to save money.

“It is imperative for the Federal Government to leverage these innovations to provide better service for its citizens in the most cost-effective and secure manner,” the report says. 

{mosads}“This Administration has prioritized modernization of Federal information technology (IT) systems, and to that end, has committed to help agencies better leverage American innovations through increased use of commercial technology.”

The guidance is part of the administration’s increased attention to modernizing the government’s technology.

The administration has created the American Technology Council to research updating the government’s lagging technology, and President Trump released an executive order aimed at bolstering cybersecurity through modernization.

The report comes amid broader efforts to advance government technology.

On Tuesday, Trump signed into law Rep. Will Hurd’s (R-Texas) Modernizing Government Technology Act, which was included in the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act.

The issue is one of the few where Democrats and Republican lawmakers have been able to find common ground this year.